


The Grasp

by Panic1IWriteFanfics



Category: Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken
Genre: Additional Warnings In Author's Note, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-20
Updated: 2018-04-20
Packaged: 2019-04-25 14:36:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,814
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14380701
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Panic1IWriteFanfics/pseuds/Panic1IWriteFanfics
Summary: You are a female Newsie, and it's a week to Christmas, and you and Race decide to buy a pie for the boys... unexpectedly, however, your past comes back to haunt you...





	The Grasp

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Person 1 follows Person 2 out for a smoke break during work, but Person 1 doesn’t actually smoke. They attempt to smoke a cigarette to impress Person 2, but they immediately start coughing uncontrollably and embarrass themselves.](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/372315) by Jouta (Tumblr @OTP Prompts and Fanfic Ideas. 



A FEW THINGS BEFORE WE BEGIN...  
1\. WARNING: Mentions of abuse, tobacco addiction, death, and a swear word (d**m)  
2\. A big thank you to OTP Prompts and Fanfic Ideas on Tumblr for giving me this idea! :)

Their Tumblr:  
https://otp-fanfic-ideas.tumblr.com/

Racetrack x Female Reader - “The Grasp”  
Started 4/19/18  
Finished 4/20/18

You are a girl Newsie, one of the many boys in the group. You were discovered in a cold and dark alleyway by Jack Kelly, the leader of the NYC Newsies who brought you back to the “boy’s house” and got you fixed up. Now you’re one of them, with your haircut short and voice a tad bit deeper in public. Although honestly, the owner never comes anyway because he doesn’t give a crap about everyone, so it doesn’t matter anyways. 

Although Jack was the strong leader of the group and the one who found you, you had your heart set on another Newsie: Race. He made your heart soar with his mischievous smile and witty jokes. You couldn’t tell someone why you fell for him, it just… happened, simply enough. 

Since you were a woman living with about thirty boys, you slept in the attic for ultimate privacy. The boys treated you with ultimate respect, and if they caused shenanigans they made sure to not involve you. 

It was December, about a week to Christmas. The Newsies’ home was abuzz with the Christmas spirit, and Davey and Jack even chopped down a Christmas tree from the park! When they arrived home, the boys were bringing out the few decorations they had, while you wrote and drew in your journal. The boys began placing ribbons on the tree, and you kept writing, until you look up to see Race turning on the radio. The boys began to dance, and you still kept writing. 

“Come on Y/N, get up and move a little bit!” Crutchie said enthusiastically, as he hopped and twirled around with his crutch firm in his hand. 

“Just hold on a minute… done!” You replied, as you grabbed a pin from your hair and stuck the paper to the back of the front door. On it you wrote, “Merry Christmas from the Newsies!” And beside it you drew a reindeer and decorated tree. 

The boys oohed and aahed at your artistic ability, and you smiled. You then turned to the boxes and opened one, a cloud of dust flying above you. You accidentally breathed it in, and coughed, your face turning red. The boys turned around, worried but not sure what to do, but luckily Race reacted fast and grabbed you a glass of water from the table. “Drink this, Y/N, quickly!” He said, as you gulped down the drink. You coughed once more, and sighed with relief.

“Glad that’s over. Thanks for the drink, Race.” You said, as he replied,

“Thanks. You good now?” You nod, and he smiles. “Good.” He turned back around to the radio, and while changing the station all the rest if the boys looked at you and started making kissy faces. You stick out your tongue at them, and Race turns around and walks back over to you. The boys act like nothing ever happened, and he says, “Time to pick up the package. Ready?” You nod, smiling, while the rest of the boys look confused.

“Package? What package?” Jack asks, stepping forward with Davey. 

“You’ll see, be patient, Mr. Kelly.” You reply, and Davey’s younger brother Leslie steps forward and asks, 

“Is it a surprise?!” You walk over to him, and kiss him upon the head. 

“Yes, my dear, it is.” You walk over to the chair and grab your coat, and the boys are shocked at what just happened. For one, you and Race planned a surprise, and you just kissed Leslie! They had only known you for a few months, but you already felt at home. You put it on, and Race walked over, unphased by the scene. 

“Come on, let’s go, Y/N.” He opened the door, and ask you walked through and Race shut the door behind him you could hear the boys chattering about the scene and “surprise.” Once outside, you both laugh hysterically. “Their faces! That was absolutely hilarious!” He laughed, and you added,

“Yeah! And Leslie turned bright red!” You both laughed, and then it grew quiet between you two, and all you could hear was the wind blowing along the streets. You shivered as you walked, and Race looked over with concern. 

“You OK? You seem a bit chilly.” 

“I’m good, thanks.” You reply, smiling weakly. Race put his right hand in his pocket, and pulled out a cigar, and grabbed a match from the fireplace. He lit it, and began to smoke. You didn’t necessarily agree with this, considering your father was a doctor and you knew most of his patients had issues with their lungs and smoked. Race looked over, his face lit up by the fire. 

“Want to try?” 

“Um, I don’t know…” Wait! You can impress Race! Try it, come on! You smiled weakly, and said,

“Sure!” As he handed you the stick, everything your father told you in the office fled into your mind.

See, they have breathed in things they shouldn’t have, sweetie. 

Never smoke! You don’t want to end up like them, do you?

I’m sorry, honey… I’ve disappointed you. 

At that moment, you quickly inhale without realizing it, and you begin to cough uncontrollably. Race turns to you, his face turning pale. “Y/N! Oh my God, um…” He turns frantically, while you can feel your face turning red. He quickly grabs some snow, and drops it into his hat. “Drink this,” He says, and the snow starts to melt. You do as you’re told, and you cough less and less. You finally stop, tears in your eyes, and Race embraces you. “I’m so so sorry Y/N, I didn’t realize you had no idea how to smoke…” He said, and his warm embrace is comforting and safe. He holds onto you until you pull away saying,

“Come on, let’s grab the pie and get back. It’s getting late.” You say, and he looks at a loss for words. You carry on, and can feel his eyes worriedly looking over you.

“Why did you inhale so quickly? You can’t do that when you smoke!” He said, as you shivered at the thought.

“I don’t know, um… look, there’s the bakery!” You say, changing the subject. You walk in, and it’s almost closing time. You sniff and smell the flour and apples, and your mouth starts to water. The baker walks to the front, and smiles at you.

“Y/N, so good to see you! Merry-almost-Christmas, sweetie!” He walks over and hugs you, and you smile and say,

“Hello, Mr. Smith. Is our pie ready?” You ask, as he goes behind the counter, and bends down and brings up a large apple pie. 

“Yes, miss. Fresh out of the oven!” He replies, as you put your hands in your coat pockets, and take out seventy-five cents. You hand it over, but Mr. Smith declines.

“It’s Christmas Time, you can have it, free of charge!” He says, smiling like a grandfather would. You put the money back into your pockets, and Race grabs the pie from the counter. “Good bye, Y/N and her friend! Stay warm!” He says, waving as you both leave the store. You both begin to speed up walking, as it’s getting later and colder, and you both know your friends will begin to worry. Finally, after what seems like hours, you can see the lights of the home. You open the door with your freezing hands, and all the boys look up from their conversation.

“What’s the surprise?!” Les asks, jumping up and down.

“Les, don’t be rude!” Davey says, as Race walks in. Everyone gasps, and stares at the apple pie, steam coming off of the crust. 

“Specs, Romeo, Albert, set the table boys. The rest of you? Clean up, will ya’?” You say, as the boys run around like ants towards a crumb. Race sets the pie down on the table, and you go up to the attic. You quietly shut your door, and put your jacket on the end of your bed. You go to your desk, and open the drawer and pick up a photo of your late father. You can feel the tears come down your face, and you say sadly, “Oh, Daddy…” Suddenly, you hear a knock, and you quickly shut the drawer with the photo. “Come in!” Leslie walks in, grinning. 

“Pie is ready!... Y/N, you alright?” He asks, frowning now, and you wipe your tears. 

“I’m fine, honey. I’ll be down in a minute.” You reply, as Leslie stares at you for a minute, and then yells,

“JACK I NEED YOU!” You can hear Jack’s heavy footsteps go up the stairs, and he walks in. 

“What’s up, junior?” He asks, as Leslie points to you.

“Y/N’s upset, and I don’t know why. Fix her!” He says, as Jack turns to you, his face wrinkling in worry. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure the boys save you both a slice.” 

“Thanks, Les.” Jack replies, as you sit on your bed, and he shuts the door. Jack puts his hands in his pockets, and sits in the chair beside you. “Hey, you alright? You don’t look so good.” 

“Jack, I-” 

“No, you’re not fine, dam it!” Jack replied, his tone surprising you. “I’m sick of people saying they’re fine when they’re not!” You break, and begin to cry. Jack’s eyes widen, and he rushes over and sits beside you. “I’m so sorry, did I frighten you?” You shake your head, and grab the photo from the drawer, and hold it tight. He looks over, and asks,

“Your old man?” You nod, still crying. You stop, and say, 

“He died- f-f-f-r-r-om s-s-smok-king…” You continue to cry, and Jack puts his arms around you. 

“Wait, did Race ask you to smoke?” You nod. “And you did it cause’ you like him?” Without realizing it, you nod again, and Jack holds your head close. “Does he know?” You shake your head, and Jack faces you, wiping your tears away. “Listen, you have brought this house so much happiness from the kindness and motherly love you have given to all of the boys. We all care about you very much, and I’m sure Race will understand.” You nod, breathing in and out. Jack smiles, and pats your back. He gets up, and opens the door. You stand, putting the photo in your pants pocket, and he bows. “Ladies first, my liege.” You giggle, and say,

“Thank you, Jack Kelly, for saving my life.” You walk up to him, and kiss him on the cheek. He turns bright red and blushes, grinning. You look in the mirror, and you quickly look at your hair. You smile, and walk down the stairs. 

When you reach the last step, Jack trailing behind, and the boys look up, none of them having touched their pie. “Why haven’t you guys eaten?” You ask, and Crutchie says,

“Well, we-”

“They eavesdropped and heard you crying.” Davey said, and all of the boys groaned. 

“DAVEY!” They yelled, and he put his hands up in defense. You laugh, and the boys do as well. Jack puts his hand on your shoulder, and turns to the rest of the group.

“Everyone, Y/N has been feeling a bit down… could everyone listen up to her for a few minutes, please?” Everyone nods, and you grab Jack’s hand and he sits beside you. Everyone looks at Race for his reaction, and you begin to speak. 

“I know a lot of you have had- issues with your folks…” You say, as you turn to a few Newsies. 

“Crutchie, I remember one night when you were crying about your mother, and how she was beaten by your father… Specs, I remember when you told me your parents made fun of you for having bad eyesight. And Jack, no matter how strong you may put yourself out to be, I know you have had issues as well…” You turned to the boys, tears in your eyes. “But just because I showed up here with a suitcase and fancy clothes doesn’t mean I haven’t had problems, too…” You could feel Jack squeezing your hand, and you told your story. 

 

I was abused by my mother for being pretty, smart, and happy… for being loved by my father.

“Y/N, get in here this instant!” 

“Yes, mother?”

“Why did you break my vase?!”

“Mother, no, it was the dog…” 

 

“Mother, no, believe me, please!” 

My father protected me whenever possible… while she was out with her friends, I helped him in his office. He was a doctor, and I wanted to be just like him.  
“Father, can women be doctors?”

His smile brightened the room, and he was as sweet as a coconut cake… 

“If anyone can do it, it can be you, my sweet.” 

He treated many patients who had issues breathing, and he did a study for a year. He found those who smoked were also the ones dying from lung damage and having other complications with breathing… 

 

“Y/N, never do this, understand? You could die just like these men have.” 

I never thought it would happen to him… but he became addicted. And he became more and more unaware of his surroundings and my mother’s actions when he smoked… one day I walked into his study, and he was coughing into his handkerchief… when he pulled it back, it was red. 

“You promised! You promised you never would!” 

After that day I knew home wasn’t safe anymore, between his health and my mother’s abusive tendencies. I ran away that night. A couple weeks later, Jack found me. My father had died a few days earlier. 

“And- I care about you all so much, and I can’t stand to see you do it because I know it’s breaking you on the inside. How matter how hard life is, you can’t resort to it. It will destroy you.” You say, as you turn to the door, tears streaming down your face. “Race, sweet sweet Race, don’t go out there and be predictable…” The boys turned towards the door, and Race was standing there, his hand on the knob. Jack quickly got up, and blocked the door. 

“You ain’t leaving here, Racetrack. Not now, especially not now.” He said firmly, as Race began to fidget with his hands. 

“Jack, I need to! I need to, it keeps me calm!” Race said, as he began to sweat. I stood up, and rushed over to Race. 

“This happened to my father, too! You can stop, I know you can!” I said, cupping his face with both of my hands. “I believe in you, Race… you can do so many other things that are better than this!” 

“Y/N, I can’t!...” 

“Yes, you can, god dam it!” You yell, kissing him. On the lips. You kiss him, for about fifteen seconds, and you pull away. He stares at you, shocked, and the boys instead of being immature wait for his reaction. “I love you… and I don’t want you to die… I can’t lose you, too…” You say, avoiding his gaze. He puts his hand under your chin, and lifts it up. He meets with your eyes and says,

“You won’t. Not here, not now, not ever.” He says confidently, as he hugs you. The whole group cheers, and you can see Jack clapping and smiling at you. Race puts his arm around you and says, “Everyone! We have to change. From now on, no more buying cigars or smoking… at my lady’s request…” He smiles at you, and adds, “And not just for her, but for all of us! So we may live long, healthy, and prosperous lives.” Everyone cheers, and you hold Race’s hand tight. 

“But first, let’s eat that pie!” You shout, as everyone grabs their plate. You go to the table and grab yours, and Race walks over to you, grabbing the plate and placing it down. You can hear the radio turn on, and Race holds out his hand. “May I have this dance?”

“Of course.” You smile, and courtesy, and you both begin to dance, while everyone else watches fondly. You now have hope, good health… and a new boyfriend! <3  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Hey everyone, happy Friday! If you guys liked this fanfic, make sure to share, and comment down below what type of fanfic you want me to write next! :) have a week, everyone, I'll try to write but I'm going to be on vacation for most of next week. thanks again for reading! <3


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